Poll

Agriculture

Residents who will soon be renewing license plates for their farm trucks will notice a $10 voluntary donation on the renewal, according to a news release from Spencer County Clerk Lynn Hesselbrock’s office.
The $10 donation will be split among the Kentucky FFA Foundation, the Kentucky 4-H Foundation and the Kentucky Department of Agriculture’s “Kentucky Proud Program.”
“All are very worthy organizations which work to keep the Kentucky agricultural community and business strong,” the news release said.

I am plotting and planning and placing order for onion sets and seed potatoes and summer crops that will be directly seeded in the garden once the temperatures really warm . . . I can barely stand the wait. I have two trays of seedlings that I started about two weeks ago and have begun another round of kale, broccoli and Brussels sprouts in three more trays.

Gardeners get anxious this time of the year. Warm one day, cold the next, the sun coaxes open a little patch of crocus by the path or we catch sight of an old landscape filled with waves of blooming white snow drops. This year the show is sure to come early and the forsythia are not the first to bloom, despite this oft cited sign of spring! There are other early bloomers to keep us occupied until spring truly arrives.

Brussels sprouts need a PR makeover. No one seems to like them.
Old varieties have been greatly improved from those forced on you as a child. Equally, cooking methods probably can stand some updating from the warm, mushy, bitter Barbie-doll-sized cabbage; don’t boil them to death, try instead some quick roasting underneath the broiler.

Kentucky farmers have battled weeds resistant to herbicides containing glyphosate for the past decade. A recent survey of agriculture and natural resource agents with the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service indicates these weeds are becoming more widespread.
Marestail (also known as horseweed), Palmer amaranth and waterhemp are examples of weeds that are not being controlled with glyphosate. James Martin, UK weed scientist, said all three weeds can pose problems for soybean growers.

The Spencer County Farmers Market Committee will be holding a planning meeting on Feb. 28 beginning at 6 p.m. Committee members would like all of those who have previously sold or are interested in selling to attend. Discussions will cover the previous selling season and begin planning the 2012 season.

The Farm Service Agency State Executive Director, John W. McCauley, announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will conduct a four-week Conservation Reserve Program general signup. This CRP signup will begin on March 12 and end on April 6,. CRP has a 25-year legacy of successfully protecting the nation’s natural resources, while providing significant economic and environmental benefits to rural communities across the United States.

I am so grateful that my husband Andy is in charge of the orchard. Fruit tree maintenance, I am convinced, is an art. There are details to pruning that can make or break good fruit set, branch structure and ability to pick when the limbs are laden with ripe fruit. While I understand the basics, I am glad Andy is the one that executes the task.

Most people are aware of the danger to ash trees from the emerald ash borer throughout North America. According to a sobering USDA Forest Service publication, “Emerald ash borer is the most destructive forest insect introduced into North America in recent history. Our present ability to detect, contain, eradicate, or manage EAB infestations is limited . . . The eventual loss of the vast majority of ash trees in North America should be anticipated.” To read the entire publication, please visit http://na.fs.fed.us/pubs/eab/eab_strategy.pdf.